The Walking Dead Season 4B
by AlVan
Summary: The prison has fallen and the Governor is dead. The group is split and broken. How can they survive? And do they even want to?
1. Chapter 1

Here We Remain Part 1

Michonne looked around. She was utterly surrounded by chaos. Chaos in many forms. In the form of walkers, people, bodies, blood, flame, and the smoke rising to the sky.  
The prison was in shambles. She ran through the burning corridors, slicing through every walker in her path. She still had things left to do, favors for friends who she knew may very well be ghosts. She ran into her cell, grabbed her bag, and made her way toward Carl's.  
Michonne sifted through Carl's belongings until she found the family portrait. She stuffed the beloved photo into her bag, slung it around her back, and moved on to her next objective.  
She made sure to get Daryl's other crossbow, the riot gear suits, and Judith's cradle that sat out in the courtyard. She was horrified by the amount of blood at first, but then realized that the seat had been unbuckled. Someone must have gotten her.  
Michonne sat the various objects of interest down, pulled out her katana, and cleared an exit path. When there were only two walkers that remained, she quickly cut off their arms and jaws, followed by departing her once intact home.  
She circled around the area, and walked back out into the open. She still had one last job. She saw Hershel's body laying on the ground, with his reanimated head rolling around the field. There were walkers feasting on his cold, dead arms. With a fierce chant, Michonne killed the undead scavengers and plunged her sword into Hershel's head. She wiped the tear rolling down her cheek, knelt to the ground, and shut Hershel's eyes. She quietly walked to the other side of the body, and made sure to get the prosthetic leg.  
She packed her bag one last time, slung it over one of her pet's necks, and departed.  
(**Cue Opening Credits**)

Rick continued to limp despite Carl's efforts to carry the weight. The walkers had all gone to the prison, so their path was quiet. But it was no respite. The quiet was nothing but a nuisance to them.  
Had there been walkers, or any other obstacle of some sort, they could be distracted. They could take out their frustration and grief. But they couldn't. All they could do was shamble through the desolate forest in hope of...what?  
"Where do we go?" Carl asked.  
"There's a town nearby. Carol and I went there on a run."  
Carl had a sudden realization. Where was Carol? "Dad...Carol never came back with you."  
Rick was at a loss. He was tired of explaining. "Carol...Carol's gone." He said simply.  
Carl teared up again. Rick glanced at him, and pondered over whether or not he should tell him the truth. But Carol _was_gone. There was no chance of them ever running into her again. It was better to leave his memories of her unscathed.  
"Just a few more miles." Rick told him.  
They both slowly made their way to their destination over the next few hours. When they finally made it, they were shocked to see that the place was rather peaceful. "This house'll do." Rick said, pointing toward the house that he and Carol had stayed in for several hours.  
Rick weakly let go of Carl and pulled out his Colt Python. "You got yours?" He asked.  
"It's empty, remember?" Carl replied.  
"Great...just be careful."  
"Dad, just let me borrow yours. I can take care of you."  
Rick gave him a look of pure disappointment. Just days before, _he_ would not have even carried a gun. Now he had to hand it over to his son for his own well being. "Okay." He said as he wept a tear. "Okay."  
Rick handed his son the Python. Carl quickly checked the ammo and opened the door. They walked in quietly and Rick shut the door behind him. They both checked each room thoroughly. While Carl pointed his father's weapon stealthily, Rick could do nothing but quiver. He walked into the bathroom and opened the cabinet.  
_Damn_. He thought. He and Carol had already cleaned house. Rick shut the cabinet back and looked at himself. He was shot, broken, without a home, missing a child, and being taken care of by someone else. Rick was right back where he started.  
He slowly walked out to see Carl coming down the stairs. "It's all clear." He said.  
"We'll stay down here for the night..." Rick said weakly.  
"It's safer upstairs." Carl said.  
Rick wasn't sure he even had the strength to make it up there, but nodded reluctantly. They both jumped slightly at the sound of scratching noises on the door, breaking the former silence.  
"I'll take care of it." Carl said before walking out of the back of the house. Rick looked up the staircase. They were so_long_. How could he ever get up there? Rick took one step, and it felt like hell. He was sure it was the most agonizing feeling he had ever felt, and he whimpered. He paused, and then took a second step. Rick finally collapsed then and fell back down to the ground.  
Carl made sure to shut and lock the back door behind him. He walked through the empty backyard, opened the typical, suburban fence, and shut it behind him. He walked around to the front yard and called out to the two walkers. "Hey you!" They turned to him. "Fresh meat, right here."  
They began to follow him as he walked backwards down the street. Carl knew that he didn't have to kill them, he just had to get them to think he was somewhere else. "Come on...just a little further." He told the brain-dead, walking corpses.  
"This place looks good." Carl said while looking at the house closest to him right before tripping. "Woah!" He exclaimed. He grabbed for his gun just as the walkers pounced on him. He saw both of their faces gnashing at his face as he held them back. He could see a third walker approaching barely in his peripheral vision.  
Carl screamed as he pulled his right arm back, aimed, and fired at the walker closest to him. The third walker piled on and grabbed for his legs. He squirmed best he could and aimed at the walker. He fired yet again, leaving only one left. With a loud screech, he threw them off of him. He crawled away and stood up. The walker moaned as it inched toward his face. Carl lined the Python up right between its eyes.  
BLAM  
Then Carl smiled, and turned back toward the house.

Michonne had been walking through the forest all day long. Nothing. She saw nothing, heard nothing, felt nothing. Her pets, one a man with an arrow still in his chest, and the other a very dirty brunette woman, seemed quieter than her previous pets. She never did find out if the Governor put them down. She hoped not. They deserved to rot for all eternity for what they did.  
_But_ she couldn't think about such things. To do so would lead her to insanity. Daryl was right. She couldn't keep dwelling on the past. Leaving the Governor was not the end of her long road to recovery.  
Quite suddenly, she heard three gunshots. She stopped and listened. Her pets both got closer to her, seemingly attempting to bite her, but they couldn't. "Dumbasses." She muttered. She started walking toward the sound and her pets followed.

Carl made it back to the house and opened the door. "I took care of it-" Carl saw his father on the floor. "**_Dad_**!" He shouted as he ran to him. He turned him over and looked at him. "Please don't be dead!" Carl sobbed. But his father's eyes remained shut, and he didn't move a muscle. "You're okay, you're just sick..." Carl said in denial. But it didn't last long. "I don't need you anymore. I killed the walkers! Outside! At the prison! I put Mom down! I shot the Governor! You couldn't protect Mom! Or Judy! Or Andrea! Or Hershel! You can't protect anyone! You're useless!"  
Carl's mood swung yet again, "_WAKE UP! WAKE UP!_" He shouted while pounding against his father's chest. Walkers started converging on the house. Carl had left the door open. He let go of his father and backed away. "I don't even care. Without you, I have nothing...just eat me..."  
The walkers entered the house and Carl just sat there. He broke out of his trance, though, when a sword went through the first walker's head, then the other, and the one after that. Michonne killed them all. She dropped her sword and rushed over to Carl.  
"Carl!" She exclaimed as they embraced. Carl burst into tears, and Michonne joined him when she saw Rick lying on the floor. Rick's arm began to move and he moaned.  
"_No_!" Carl screamed.  
Michonne stood up. "Carl, I have to." She said.  
But then Rick lifted his head up. "Carl..."he groaned. "Don't...go...outside..."  
Michonne and Carl let out a sigh of relief. "I'll get him on the couch." Michonne said. "We'll stay here until he gets better. Hold on one sec, I brought some antibiotics with me. "  
Michonne walked outside to see her pets trying to wander off. "Hey!" She shouted. They turned and walked back toward her. Once they were in the house, she shut the door and locked it.  
What Michonne didn't know, though, was what her pets were headed toward before. The man inside of the house across the street simply smiled and took another bite of his meal.  
(**End Credits**)


	2. Chapter 2

Here We Remain Part 2:

She covered her face with her hands. Horror, shock, despair, anger, they all rocked her mind all at once as she dropped to the ground. Carol saw the ruins of the prison. She could see the walls caving in, the fire, and the walkers that now covered the entire field.  
But she couldn't let her guard down. She got up off the ground, pulled out her knife and scanned the area. She could see a familiar body nearby. She teared up yet again as she approached Hershel's headless body. He had already been put down. She looked around for a sign, _any_ sign, that someone had made it. Lizzie or Mika, Daryl, Rick, anyone. Then she saw it.  
A small flower lay on the ground. She picked it up to get a closer look. She smiled, and wept tears of joy, for she knew that Lizzie had made it.  
(**Cue Opening Credits**)

Glenn sat on the moving bus, staring at Darren. He _told_ him to wait, and he grabbed the wheel and left Maggie and the others behind. "Stop the bus." He muttered. But he remained ignored. "I said, STOP THE DAMN BUS!"  
"If we go back, we'll die." Jeanette said.  
"Last time I checked, I was still a member of the council. The _only_ member on this ride. I'm in charge, and I say we stop the bus, and then turn it right back around."  
"Look, man, anyone who made it would have left by now." Darren said calmly.  
"We can still go look for them! I'm not leaving Maggie! And if you won't turn around, then stop the bus, because I'm not leaving my family behind!"  
"Glenn-" Jeanette was interrupted from comforting him when a scream was heard. Someone in the back of the bus had turned and was biting into someone's neck.  
A woman stabbed the walker with a knife and Glenn shouted "Everyone remain calm!"  
Darren saw a walker and swerved off of the road. Everyone fell over and the bus hit a tree. A large bag slid toward Glenn and hit him in the face, knocking him unconscious.

Two walkers wandered aimlessly in the forest. An arrow went through one's head and the other turned and looked around. Daryl was reloading his crossbow while speaking with Beth. "You got this one?" He asked while the lone walker approached them.  
"Yeah." She replied. Beth pulled one of Daryl's arrows from his quiver, ran up to the walker, and drove it into its skull. She tried to pull the arrow out, but it was stuck. She set the walker down and used both of her hands to pull the arrow out.  
"Good job." Daryl said as he pulled the other arrow out of the walker he had killed. "I'll teach you how to use this thing next time we run into one."  
"Okay." She said simply. Daryl could see that Beth didn't want to speak. It didn't seem like she had quite processed what had just happened.  
"You alright?" He asked.  
"Yeah." She replied, her eyes still showing hollowness.  
"We should keep movin'. There must be a town or somethin' nearby." Daryl said.  
Another walker appeared and started shambling toward them. Daryl handed his crossbow to Beth. "You got this." He assured her. Beth raised it up and aimed at the walker. She hadn't even fired a gun in several months before the assault on the prison. She had _never_ used a crossbow before. She took a deep breath, steadied her aim, and fired.  
The walker fell to the ground and Daryl patted Beth on the back. "We gonna' have to find another bow for you."

Maggie scanned the area. "You said this was safe?" She questioned Sasha.  
"I said it had meds for Bob." She replied.  
"Sasha needs 'em, too." Bob said.  
They looked upon the destroyed Big Sp!t and saw that walkers had covered the entire area after the accident. "How much ammo we got?" Bob asked.  
"Not enough for this." Sasha said. "Me and Daryl were keeping track of it. We were already. running low before the attack. Now...we might as well be empty."  
"Save your bullets for the close calls." Maggie said.  
"For other things, too." Bob said. Maggie and Sasha both looked at him, worried.  
"I'll run in, grab some things out of the tents, and get right out." Sasha said.  
"No." Maggie stopped her.  
"We have to get those meds, and any ammo-"  
"You're _sick_, Sasha. Bob is shot. I'm quick on my feet. Don't worry." Maggie assured her.  
Sasha hesitated. "Fine." She said. "But I'm not just gonna' stand by. I'll lay down some cover fire from here."  
"Here." Maggie said as she handed Sasha her rifle and pulled out her pistol.  
Bob pulled out his gun, but Sasha stopped him. "You need to rest. I'll watch Maggie, you just watch my back and make sure nothing gets too close."  
Sasha raised her rifle as Maggie walked out into the open. She broke out into a run, pushing any walker over that stood in her way. Two walkers attacked her from both sides. Maggie shot one while Sasha got the other from afar. The rest of the horde took notice.  
"Shit." Maggie said before entering through the fence. Sasha began shooting at every walker in the area. Bob stood up and looked around. Walkers in the surrounding forest were beginning to encroach on them.  
"Sasha."  
"I know." She said. "Just wait for Maggie."

Maggie ran to the first tent she saw. She looked around and saw nothing useful. She ran back out to see walkers pouring in through the fence, coming for her.

Glenn awoke in a daze. Everything was spinning, and he could hear the sound of chewing and ripping. His sight returned to him and he was horrified by the sight in front of him. Everyone on the bus appeared to be dead, and the walkers had taken notice.  
He analyzed the situation. At least a dozen walkers were between him and the back door, and all he had was his knife. He took a deep breath and prepared himself.

Maggie ran to the tent on the other side of the lot. It appeared to be larger, and she knew she could work her way back this way, rather than getting caught in a corner. She looked inside and found a box labeled "AMMO."  
Maggie smiled and opened it. She grabbed the bullets needed and loaded her pistol. She walked back outside and looked back to the way she came from. She raised her gun and took a deep breath as the herd approached.

Glenn heaved as he pulled himself up from the floor. It was only then that he noticed the dried blood on his head. The walkers started to notice him. He sunk his blade into the one nearest to him.

Maggie fired all her shots and realized she wasn't even making a dent. "Sasha! Bob!" She shouted. "Get to the other side of the fence!"  
She ran back inside the tent and grabbed the ammo box. She looked around and found a small map that displayed the set-up of camp. The meds tent was two over. She turned to see the walkers entering the tent.

Glenn had killed two of the walkers, but many remained, and they were all aware of his presence now. He lunged at the next walker and stabbed it in the head. Two more came at him, and he fell back, and slid.  
Glenn hit the front of the bus with a thud. Darren's corpse came to life then and looked over at Glenn. He huffed in terror as the walker fell from the driver's seat and onto him, the other walkers inches away.

Maggie pointed her gun and pulled the trigger, but it was empty. "Shit!" She exclaimed before panicking and searching desperately for another weapon. She looked under the table and found a single grenade laying on the ground.  
But it was too late. The walkers began to pile on top of her. She kicked, squirmed, screamed, and managed to get them off of her. She crawled away and heard gunshots coming from outside.

Glenn plunged his knife into Darren's undead head, and looked around once more for a solution as the walkers started piling on top of Glenn. He could feel the weight of the walkers crushing him. "I'm sorry, Maggie." He whispered. But the sound of footsteps was heard, and a gunshot was fired. Then another, and another. Glenn let himself go and fainted.

Maggie pulled the grenade and threw it into the horde. A large explosion occurred, and blood splattered everywhere. "Maggie, you okay?!" She heard Sasha call out to her.  
There was no response.  
"Stay here." Sasha said to Bob as she began to climb over the fence. She ran over to the tent, raised her rifle at the two remaining walkers, and pulled the trigger. But just as Maggie was before, she was out of ammo. "Dammit."  
Sasha ran up to the first walker and knocked it over with a swift punch to the chest. She stomped its head into the asphalt and used the butt of her rifle to knock the next one over. She crushed its skull with her rifle and walked into the tent. "Maggie!" She exclaimed as she ran over to her.  
"The ammo's over there. The meds are a couple of tents over. Just go." Maggie said.  
"What are you talking about?" Sasha asked, worried. Maggie, with twinkle of hatred and regret in her eyes, held up her wrist. Sasha wept a tear at the sight of Maggie's bite.

Daryl and Beth had been trekking all day long and the sun was going down. They finally reached their destination: the final resting place of Merle Dixon.  
Daryl looked around and angrily kicked the grain bin with a shout. "Daryl." Beth tried to calm him down.  
"They should be here!" He cried out.  
"There are other places. They could have met up at any place we had been to before. We can keep looking tomorrow-"  
"You know they're already gone. That's what we've always done...assumed the worst, left people behind..."  
"Maybe they did. But we're survivors. We'll find a place. Maybe we'll find them. But for right now, we need to find a place to stay."  
Daryl gave Beth a look. He had worried after Zack's death that Beth may have become cold and unstable. But it wasn't that at all. She had just toughened up. "We'll backtrack to that apartment complex a few miles back." He said.  
Beth looked around. "This is where Merle died, isn't it?" She asked.  
"Yeah..." Daryl had returned to bury him along with Sasha, Glenn, Carol, and Hershel some time ago. It was their first official council meeting.  
"I never came to pay my respects." Beth said.  
Daryl paced around, trying to hold in the various emotions rocking him. He pointed to his right and said, "It's over there."  
Beth walked for a little bit and found the cross sticking out of the ground with some rocks circling the spot. A walker saw Beth and began to shamble toward her. Merle's bayonet lay next to the grave. "Go ahead and take it. Merle don't need it no more." Daryl told her as he walked up.  
Beth picked it up and approached the walker, and then sunk the blade into its head.

Tyreese, Lizzie, Mika, and the rest of the children had been walking aimlessly through the forest all day. The occasional walker or two would wander by, but they were no match for Tyreese's hammer. "Mr. Tyreese, how much farther?" Mika asked.  
"I don't know, Mika, I don't know."  
"Where are we even going?" Lizzie asked.  
Tyreese stopped dead in his tracks and shook his head. "I was just...I was just hopin' we'd run into somebody by now."  
"You mean we have no where to go? It's almost nighttime!" Lizzie exclaimed.  
"You do have somewhere to go." They heard a familiar voice behind them. They all turned to see Carol. Carol shed a tear of relief.  
_The kids made it. That's all that matters._ She thought.  
They ran to her and gave her a hug. She then heard the sound of crying. And then she saw her.  
There, in Mika's arms, lay Judith. "Oh my God, you saved her!" Carol said as she wrapped her arms around the children.  
Tyreese smiled at the happy sight. Carol looked up to see him, and then remembered. Her smile faded and she stood back up. "I have a place set up not too far from here." She told them.  
"You already got a place set up?" Tyreese asked.  
"It's been a couple of days..."  
"What are you talking about? That attack _just happened_ this morning."  
"Did you not realize I was gone?" Carol asked. "What did Rick tell you when he got back?"  
"All hell broke loose at the prison last night." Lizzie said. "Then the Governor attacked this morning. Where were you?"  
"Rick and I were separated on the supply run." Carol said.  
"Why didn't he say anything?" Tyreese asked.  
"I guess he was just...preoccupied." Carol said simply. She would figure out how to handle this later.

Glenn woke up abruptly and looked around as he grabbed his knife. "Woah, woah, slow down there!" The woman said. He was in an RV.  
"Who are you?" He asked.  
"My name's Tara." She said. "Me and my sister found you in a pretty tight spot. What's your name?"  
"Glenn." He told her. "Have you seen anyone else? Did anyone else on that bus survive?"  
"No, I'm sorry. You were the only one, and you don't seem to be in good shape, either. We checked you for bites, but you're clean. You do have a pretty nasty crack on your head, though."  
"Where are we right now?"  
"Our former camp. We figured we could stay here one more night before setting off."  
"You keep talking about your sister. Where is she?"  
"She's keeping watch on the roof. We've been through some serious shit lately. I just lost my niece. HER daughter. There's no sign of my girlfriend either..."  
"I'm so sorry..."  
"It's okay. You've been through a lot more than we have, I'm sure. You came from that prison, right?"  
Glenn's eyes widened. "How did you-"  
"We were with him. The bastard lied to us, said you were all rapists and killers and shit. Then he...he-"  
"He what?!"  
"He cut off that guy's head...and I can't get that image out of my head."  
"What guy?" Glenn said as he started tearing up.  
"Old guy. Had a beard. Real Santa-type, y'know? It was terrible..."  
Glenn burst into tears and Tara found herself comforting him.  
Then they heard a knock on the door. "'The hell?" Tara asked.  
"Hello? We're looking for a place to stay the night. Anybody in there? Hello!" He said as he continued to knock.  
Tara grabbed her gun and loaded it. She walked to the door and opened it. She pointed her gun at three people. The man in front wore camouflage and had a distinct mustache. The man behind him had a suspicious look to him, and a mullet. The woman was a very attractive Latina holding a machete on her shoulder. Tara nearly drooled at the very sight of her.  
"So...can we come in or are you just going to stand there gawking?" The man with the mullet asked.

"_BOB_!" Sasha called out in a panic. "You're gonna be fine, Maggie." She said as she laid her down. "Bob, hurry the hell up! Find something sharp!"  
Maggie began reflecting. "I just got so used to wearing the suit...I forgot how dangerous they were in a big group. Tell Glenn and Beth...that I love them..."  
Sasha heard groaning coming from outside the tent. She loaded Maggie's pistol and aimed at the tent flaps. A walker walked in but a gunshot quickly took it down. Bob ran past it.  
"Where's the sharp object?!" Sasha shouted.  
"Don't need one." Bob said as he opened the ammo box and pulled out a bullet. He opened it up and ordered Sasha to hold Maggie down.  
"What are you doing?" She questioned him.  
"Just do it, dammit!" Bob exclaimed as he poured the gun powder over Maggie's bite. Maggie screamed and squirmed. Bob pulled out his lighter and lit it. "Just relax, Maggie..." He said as he held the flame to her bite.  
Maggie had never felt so much pain in her whole life. The fire spread across her wrist quickly and Bob poured water on the affected area.  
Maggie fainted and Sasha just sat there in shock. Bob reveled in his head. He might have _finally_ saved someone. But he knew they weren't out of the ballpark yet. "I don't know if you're religious, but if there were a time to pray, it would be now."

(**End Credits**)


	3. Chapter 3

Hate:

"Who the hell are you?" Tara interrogated the group of three.  
"Name's Abraham." The man in front said. "This here's Rosita," he said while pointing at the woman, "and Eugene." Eugene waved sarcastically.  
Glenn looked around for a weapon. All he could find was a large kitchen knife. He approached the door sneakily.  
Tara walked out, her pistol still being kept handy. "Lilly! Why didn't you tell me-"  
Abraham knocked Tara down with the butt of his rifle. Tara turned quickly to aim her gun at him but Rosita quickly kicked the weapon out of her hands. "Glenn!" Tara called out.  
Glenn jumped out with his knife, but Eugene and Rosita both had him at gunpoint. "You're not too bright are you, girl?" Abraham mocked Tara. "You trust strangers too easily, and a pistol? Do you even have a knife on you? Not to mention shouting out for someone to answer. Girl, where the hell have you been the past year and a half?"  
Tara and Glenn both gave Abraham deadly scowls. "I'm not here to harm you. I'm just teaching a lesson." He said before reaching his hand out to Tara. She grabbed hold and he pulled her up to a certain extent, and then dropped her again.  
"Wrong. What reason do you have to trust me? Why the hell did you just grab my hand?"  
"Cut the bullshit!" Glenn said. "What do you want?"  
Eugene smiled and said, "Decent, intelligent company. We have yet to find such a rare thing."  
"Where is my sister? What did you do to her?!" Tara questioned them.  
"Ahh! That's better." Abraham congratulated Tara as she grabbed her gun and stood up. "I've never seen your sister before in my life, but I'm glad to see you're learning."  
Tara rolled her eyes angrily and pondered over what to do next. "There's still sort of a camp over there. Go ahead and make yourselves at home, but believe me when I say that I _will_ put a bullet in you if you try anything."  
Abraham smiled. "You heard her. Let's go set up."  
Glenn tapped Tara on the shoulder after they had past them. They both exchanged a knowing look and followed them.  
"Well, shit." They heard Abraham said. "Who's this bitch?"  
Tara and Glenn got closer and saw what it was. Tara dropped her gun and broke down on her knees. Her sister hung on a rope from a tree right behind the RV.

(**Cue Opening Credits**)

Carol sat atop the train, her rifle sitting in her lap. She had changed into her other set of clothes, in order to keep warm. She heard the door open from below her, followed by closing back. Tyreese climed up the ladder and sat down. "I'll take the next shift. Can't sleep anyhow." He said in a tired voice.  
"I'm not really all that sleepy yet, either. Besides, did you ever really get the hang of firing a weapon?"  
"I'm still pretty rusty. Didn't hit nobody in the fight. You should know, though. Lizzie and Mika saved me. They didn't hesitate."  
Carol felt proud. "That's my girls."  
"So what did you do when you were alone? It's not like you could stay up all night out here."  
"Walkers couldn't get into this thing no matter how hard they tried. I knew there had to be a train out here somewhere. There were tracks right next to the prison."  
"So why keep watch tonight?"  
"I said the dead couldn't get in there. I have people to protect now, and you told me earlier that a serial killing rapist blew up the prison with a tank. THAT is why I'm keeping watch."  
They sat there, silently for a few moments. It was comforting to hear the various insects making noise, for it reminded them that some walks of life weren't affected by the state of the world at all.  
"Your sister, did she make it?" Carol asked.  
"I saw her get away with Maggie and Bob. She's still sick, though."  
"Maggie's tough. Bob was an army medic. She's in good hands. Besides, Sasha's one tough cookie. The council...if we ever had to narrow it down, Sasha and Daryl were the ones most fit to lead."  
"What about you? Or Rick?"  
Carol paused and frowned at the thought of she and Rick leading together. "Me and Rick...we do things without thinking about it. We don't think about the long-term effects."  
"You said you and Rick got separated. Why do you have a change of clothes?"  
"You know how it is. I always pack some extra provisions just in case the worst happens." She lied. Rick packed her clothes before they ever left the prison.  
"Why didn't you come right back to the prison?" Tyreese asked. He knew there was something odd going on.  
"I felt like I needed it. Almost everyone in the group had survived on their own at one point or another. I thought it would be good for me, and no one would have let me just pack up and camp out for a few days by myself. They would for Daryl, or Michonne. But not me. It's only been a day. But I can feel it. I am a survivor. I'm going to make it."  
Carol was a fantastic liar. Tyreese believed every word. "So what's the plan? Where do we go from here?" He asked.  
"I'd say this is a nice place to hole up until we find somewhere better. We'll search the surrounding areas and get back here before it gets dark."  
"Do you think we'll find everyone?"  
"Not everyone. But we'll find everyone who's left. They're looking for us. Sasha will want to find you, and everyone else will be looking for the kids."  
"What do we do about Judith?"  
"I guess you and I will have to take shifts. These kids will need to learn how to fight. I can't just leave any of them here alone with Judith while we go out looking for supplies. You need the rest. Stay here with Judith tomorrow."  
"Luke is still sick."  
"We'll look for some medicine but I can't leave a sick child in a confined space with Judith all day long. It's bad enough they're together right now."  
"You're taking all of them with you? You sure you can handle that?"  
"These kids are our future. I would do anything to protect them. _Anything_."  
Tyreese paused for a moment. "You should know. Hershel didn't make it. Governor dragged him and Michonne out...and then he cut off his head with her sword."  
Carol gasped and teared up. "And what about him? Who killed the Governor?"  
"I don't know, but somebody hit him. Everyone of us started firing right when he..."  
They heard a groan. A walker was approaching the train. "I got it." Carol said before going to the ladder, climbing down a few steps, and hopping down to the ground.  
She pulled out her knife, ran up to the walker, and stabbed its head with ease. She wiped her knife off and turned back. "I'm turning in. You got it?" She asked.  
"Yeah...I'm good." Tyreese responded.

Glenn had already cut Lilly down and Tara was hovering over her, shouting hysterically. "Lilly! Please wake up! Please!"  
"Quiet down!" Abe ordered her.  
Tara pointed her gun straight at his head. "Back the hell up! Say one more word and see what happens."  
"Tara..." Glenn tried to calm her down.  
"Are you actually going to fire a weapon? Out here? In the _dark_, no less."  
Glenn walked straight up to Abraham with his knife drawn. "Look, she saved my life, and now her sister is dead. Shut up and let her grieve."  
"She can grieve later." Rosita spoke up. "She needs to be put down."  
"She's not dead!" Tara exclaimed.  
"That's what they always say, right before they get bit." Eugene said.  
Abraham pulled out his knife and approached Lilly. Glenn walked over to Eugene and stole his pistol. "Hey!"  
Glenn pointed the gun at Abraham's head. "Is this what you do? Kill people for no reason?"  
"Watch yourself-"  
"No, you watch yourself. I know guys like you. One of 'em tied me to a chair and beat me, and let my girlfriend get assaulted. I would've put a bullet in his head if-"  
"If what? That IF tells me that you're never killed anyone. It's admirable, but not a good way to threaten someone. Haven't you seen what happens when someone turns? It's total chaos. Every time. _Every time_ someone turns and bites someone else, then bullets start flying, walkers descend on the place, and only a few smart bastards like me get away-"  
Lilly awoke with a gasp. Tara hugged her. "Lilly! It's okay. We're okay."  
Glenn gave Abraham a scornful look. Abraham looked down at the ground. "I'm sorry." He said. "We'll leave if you want us to."  
Tara turned back to them. "We'll talk about this in the morning."  
"Tara...who are all these people..." Lilly asked weakly.  
"It's okay. Just get some rest." Tara told her. "Can you help me with her?" She asked Glenn.  
"Yeah." He replied as he went to her side and helped lift Lilly off of the ground. "I'll keep watch the rest of the night." Glenn said.  
"You sure? That head isn't gonna heal itself."  
"I got it."  
"Thanks."  
They both heard the sound of a large truck moving. They looked over to see the enormous army truck that Abraham was driving. It went around to the back of the RV and parked. Abraham got out and walked to the side, followed by letting his emotions out. Rosita walked over to him.  
"It's okay." She said while patting him on the back.  
"I nearly killed her. I almost killed that woman for no reason."  
"You were just trying to keep us safe. I said we should have put her down, too."  
"Please, Rosita, please...just don't let me kill again!" He cried out as she held him.

Daryl and Beth had been taking turns keeping watch during the night. They were staying in an apartment on the top floor. The door was locked and the building was quiet, but they had to be sure. They would clear out the place the next day after checking their next location.  
Beth sat on the couch with the crossbow her lap, watching the door. Her eyes opened and closed constantly. She tried so hard to stay awake, but she couldn't. She finally succumbed to her fatigue and drifted off...  
_Beth saw nothing but black. She wandered around in the darkness, trying to find something. She eventually came across a fence. "I have a tank, and I'm lettin' you walk away from here." She heard as she turned around. "What else is there to talk about?" The Governor stood in front of her with Michonne's katana in hand.  
"Please, you don't have to do this." Beth pleaded with him. Hershel was on his knees in front of her, with tears rolling down his eyes.  
"Liar." The Governor hissed coldly before swinging the sword. Hershel's head flew clean off and Beth screeched. The Governor grabbed her and plunged his sword through her heart, while she continued to scream into the darkness._  
"No!" Beth screamed as she woke up. She grabbed for her weapon, but it wasn't there.  
"Settle down." Daryl said. "I saw you fell asleep, so I brought you in here."  
She was laying in bed. Daryl had tucked her in.  
Beth was heaving air in and out of her lungs. Her nightmare felt so REAL. She calmed down after a couple of minutes.  
"You okay?" Daryl asked.  
"Thank you." She said simply. "I'm sorry I fell asleep."  
"'S alright. We're okay, anyway." He said as he slumped into the chair in the corner.  
Beth was tired and afraid. Her father was dead. For all she knew, everyone was dead. Everyone except her and Daryl. "Daryl..."  
"Yeah?"  
"Hold me." She said as a tear rolled down her face. Daryl crawled into bed awkwardly. He had never been put in this situation before. Beth just lied there, waiting. Daryl reluctantly put his arms around her.  
_This is weird_. He thought.  
"That guy...in the tank. Was he the first person you killed?" She asked.  
"No." Daryl said.  
"Who was?"  
"I don't know. Someone at Woodbury probably."  
"Do you feel anything?"  
"No. They got what they deserved."  
"I've never killed anybody. I fired at them, but...I just kept pulling the trigger. I don't know if I actually killed anyone."  
"Even if you did, they deserved it. Scumbags killed your dad."  
"I know. But...it can't be that easy."  
"It's easier than you think. I hate losing people. Someone else's, though, I could pick away at 'em all day."  
They lay there, quietly for a few minutes. Beth broke the silence. "What happened to Carol?" She asked.  
Daryl felt a wave of anger wash over him at the very mention of her name. "What do you mean?"  
"I didn't see her get away. I didn't see her at all, actually."  
Daryl paused. He didn't want to talk about it. "Rick kicked her out."  
"What?"  
"Carol...she killed Karen and David. She was dangerous."  
"Why? Why would she do that?"  
"She wanted to keep the disease from spreading."  
"How is that any different from what you do?"  
"What?"  
"You said it's easy to kill the enemy. Karen and David were a threat, so they were enemies."  
"You sayin' she was right?"  
"I'm saying she only did what we've all done ten times over. You kill or you die."  
Daryl went blank then. "Let's just...let's just get some sleep."

Glenn sat in the lawn chair atop the RV all night long. He enjoyed how quiet it was and experienced several waves of nostalgia washing over him as he remembered the days when it was as simple as sitting in a chair and keeping watch. The area in which the camp was located was not unfamiliar to him, and he knew that the majority of walkers in the surrounding area must have gone to the prison.  
Glenn heard the sound of shaking coming from behind him and he stood up. He looked over to see Abraham's truck moving back and forth in constant motion. "'The hell?" Glenn muttered to himself as he aimed his rifle and looked through the scope. He could see Eugene sitting in the back, wide awake. He looked up at Glenn, raised his hand, and made the gesture of shooting himself in the head.  
"Oh!" Glenn realized what was going on and sat back down. _Was it that obvious when me and Maggie did it_? He thought.  
He sat back down and decided to ignore it. He didn't want anything reminding him of Maggie. He knew that she must have made it, but for the sake of his own mental health, he had to suppress the very thought of her existence, or lack of.  
He heard the door open underneath him, and Lilly walked outside. "I wanted to come look at your head." Her voice was very raspy.  
"It's fine. You need more rest than I do."  
Lilly paused for a second, wondering how to apologize. A walker in the forest heard them speaking and started shambling toward Lilly. "I'm real sorry about...everything. I just want you to know-"  
"Look out!" Glenn shouted. It was too late, though, and the walker bit into Lilly's neck. Her voice was too weak to even allow her to scream. She dropped to the ground and Glenn shot the walker. The shot echoed throughout the camp, and the forest. The truck stopped shaking, and Tara woke up. And like magic, Glenn, Eugene, Abraham, Rosita, and Tara all said, "_Shit_."

Beth woke up next to Daryl. He had fallen asleep with his arms still around her. She needed to use the bathroom and pushed him off of her. It was around three in the morning. She got up slowly and sleepily walked across the room. She exited the bedroom and saw something peculiar. The front door was open. She realized what this meant and panicked. She looked around for a weapon and turned back to wake up Daryl.  
"Da-" A hand grabbed her and covered her mouth. She screamed silently as she was dragged across the room. She looked around to see two men, wearing masks like burglars. They dragged her out of the apartment and down the hall. She tried biting his hand to no avail. He let his hand off for a brief second so they could put a bag over her head. And in that tiny moment of reprieve, she called out, "_DARYL_!"  
Everything went dark as the bag went over her head and she could tell that one of them had picked her up and broke out into a run.

Tyreese yawned. He didn't know how long he had been sitting there, on top of that train, keeping watch. All he knew was that he couldn't wait to get some rest. He felt something sharp touch his neck and he looked over to see a very skinny and depraved-looking man holding a sharp knife to his throat. "Give me yer' shit." He ordered.  
Tyreese handed over his rifle. "Please, there are kids. One of them is sick-"  
"Quiet!"  
Tyreese looked down to see that there were two other men. They all looked as though they had been to hell and back.  
Carol and the kids woke up abruptly as the large metal door swung open. "Well, well, what do we have here?" One of the men said.

Daryl heard Beth's cry for help and quickly jumped out of bed. He looked around for his crossbow, but they had taken it. He still had his knife on him, so he ran out, full of anger. "Beth!" He shouted out as he ran out of the apartment. He ran down the hallway toward the fire escape. Daryl ran down the staircase quickly. He stopped when he saw a small axe covered in dry blood on the ground. He picked it up and continued to run.

Glenn quickly climbed down the ladder and ran over to Lilly. More walkers were approaching her. Tara opened the RV door and entered a state of shock at the very sight of her sister. Glenn fired more shots at the walkers who ventured toward Lilly. "Tara! Grab some weapons!" He ordered her. She walked back slowly, grabbed her pistol, and walked back outside.  
"You don't have to do this." Glenn said. Tara remained silent, and knelt down to Lilly's side. She had already succumbed to blood loss. Tara aimed her gun at her sister's lifeless head.  
BLAM  
Abraham, Rosita, and Eugene walked over with their weapons drawn, and Abraham was clearly angry. "What the hell is wrong with you? You've brought a damn herd down us!"  
"Calm. Down." Glenn said.  
"We need to go. Now." Eugene said as the walkers slowly approached them.  
"Go where? There are walkers in every direction. We have to spread them out, and clear a path." Abraham said. Rosita had her machete in hand and Abraham had his knife. Tara was still kneeling over Lilly's body.  
"Tara..." Glenn tried to get her attention. She held her gun out to him.  
"Take it." She said. Glenn was tired of it. He lost the prison, he lost his family, and now he was stuck with a bunch of hotheads, idiots, and smartasses.  
"Get up." He told Tara as he grabbed her. He pulled Eugene's pistol out of his pocket once again and made sure it was loaded. Rosita sliced through a walker that had come around to their side of the RV.  
Glenn started giving out orders. "You," He said while pointing at Eugene. "Get Lilly's body into the truck, then climb up on top of the RV. Tell us when the road is clear and we can leave." He then pointed toward Abraham and Rosita. "You two go clear out as many walkers as you can around the camp." And finally, he looked to Tara. "And you and me are going to draw the herd away from here."  
Abraham smiled. He had underestimated Glenn.

Carol's eyes had a cold hatred the likes of which scared the children more than the bandits standing before them. The men had them all at gunpoint. "How 'bout everybody just takes a step outside?" The man in front asked.  
"Turn around. Leave. Don't come back." Carol said.  
The men chuckled. "Oh, we're _so_ scared! The little old lady watching over the kids is gonna get us!"  
"Come on kids." Carol said as she stood up and walked outside. The children followed her. Luke and Molly were both crying.  
"Everybody empty their pockets." One of them said as they both started patting them down. Tyreese sat there, horrified. He had never killed someone before, but he didn't see any other way around it.  
When one of the bandits approached Lizzie, she immediately pulled out her gun and pointed it at him, but the man knocked it out of her hands. "Woah, little lady! That's a big boy toy! You don't need that." He cackled as he picked the firearm up off of the ground. "You know, it's not nice to point at people. You know what happens to little girls who aren't nice?"  
Lizzie spat in his face and tried to run, but the men quickly took her down. "Get off of her!" Carol shouted.

Beth kept moving her hands around, trying to grab something. She could feel the rain hitting her, they must have been outside. "Where do you wanna' do it?" She heard one of them ask the other.  
"We don't have the supplies with us tonight. We just need to take her back home, and then we'll do it there."  
Beth finally felt a knife, and pulled it out of the man's back pocket. "'The hell?" The man muttered before screaming as Beth pierced the knife through the back of his knee. She stabbed him there over and over and he fell to the ground.  
Beth crawled away as the man writhed in pain. She took the bag off of her head and turned to see the other man pursuing her, with Daryl's crossbow in hand.

Glenn fired at the horde while running past it, with Tara following closely behind. "This is far enough." He said. They both stopped, with their backs to the river. Tara panicked while Glenn continued firing.  
"What's wrong?"  
"I-I've never done this before!" Glenn got behind her and grabbed her arms. "What are you-"  
"Just watch." He said as he guided her pistol to each walker, and killing every single one. He let go, and she continued by herself.

The men ripped Lizzie's pants off. "Stop it!" Tyreese shouted. Carol ran over but the man turned and hit her in the face with the butt of his rifle. She fell back to the ground, almost unconscious, and her nose bleeding.  
"NO!" Lizzie shouted as she tried to squirm away.  
"Save me a turn! Haha!" The man next to Tyreese said. Tyreese felt an anger and hatred wash over him that he never had before. He grabbed the man's knife quickly and lunged at him. The man screamed as Tyreese stabbed him in the heart repeatedly.  
Carol jumped up and grabbed the man who hit her, and bit into his neck. She felt the blood splatter everywhere. The children were paralyzed with fear as she dropped him, leaving him to die of blood loss. The last man was terrified and tried to run away. "Stop! Please!" He pleaded. Lizzie tripped him and Carol picked up her knife.  
His pants were already down. "You know what happens to asshole rapists who point their dicks at little girls!" She shouted.  
"No! Please!" He screeched one last time as Carol plunged her knife between his legs again and again.

Beth tried to get away, but she was too slow and the man shot her in the shoulder with the crossbow. She screamed loudly, rolled over, and slid off of the road and down the ravine as the rain poured down on her. The man turned to see Daryl swinging his axe at his head. He dodged it by inches, and the blade sliced through his cheek.  
He dropped the crossbow and punched Daryl hard. The two men broke out into a fist-fight as the other kidnapper started dragging himself toward the crossbow. He was determined kill Beth.

Abraham and Rosita both decided to go around the RV on different sides, he on the left and she on the right. Abraham stabbed each one with ease. His dagger had never let him down before. Rosita sliced the very top of each one with her machete. It killed them, and it saved time. They both met at the back. The majority of the herd had followed Glenn and Tara, but a few were still in the camp, and many were on the road. "You clear the camp, I'll get the ones on the road." Abraham said.  
"Works for me." She replied.  
Rosita ran to the truck first while Abraham picked up a pitchfork off of the ground and made his way toward the road.  
He broke out into a road, headed toward the herd. He stabbed the first one, and got the rest's attention. "Come on!" He shouted. Abraham ran to the side, causing the rest to follow.

Beth slid further and further down into darkness, with the arrow still stuck in her shoulder. She hit the bottom with a thud and heard gunshots in the forest. "Daryl!" She called out. She saw a figure coming over the side. But it wasn't Daryl, it was the man who tried to take her. He fell over just as she did and landed on top of her at the bottom of the ravine. Beth kicked him off with a war cry and pulled the arrow through her shoulder. The man had dropped the crossbow. They both went for it at the same time.

Abraham ran into a dead end. A dock on a lake. He turned to see the horde coming onto the dock. He stabbed the pitchfork into the first walker's chest and tried to hold them off, but the dock shook, and then the old thing gave in and they fell into the dead lake.  
Abraham could see nothing, and he had lost the pitchfork. A walker grabbed him from behind. He struggled and dropped his knife. He grabbed the walkers arms and pulled. They almost floated off of it and he turned around to see the armless walker in front if him. It was attached to a chain. Abraham felt sympathy for the poor soul. He swam to the top for a quick breath, and then returned to the walker infested abyss. He swam down, and looked for his dagger. Walkers floated everywhere, but they couldn't even tell each other apart now, and were grabbing at everything, including each other.

Daryl was beaten badly, but not as much as his foe. He stood over him, full of rage, with his axe in hand. "It's too late." He said with a laugh. "I already killed her."  
Daryl swung down on his head harshly, killing him. He ran over to the ledge shouting, "Beth!"  
Daryl looked down to see two figures lying on the ground at the bottom. One had an arrow sticking out of its head, and the other did not. Daryl was horrified. "Beth!" He called out. Neither figure moved, but Daryl was starting to see. The rain washed the mud off, and he could see plain as day that Beth had survived.

Abraham could see his dagger shining at the bottom of the lake and picked it up. He looked up to see the walkers swimming around, attacking each other in the dead lake. It was like watching a sea monster film. He squatted down, and kicked the bottom, shooting him upward. On the way to the top, he sliced his dagger through the head of the chained walker, putting it out of its misery.  
Abraham crawled out of the lake and let out a cry of relief, but it was too soon, and a walker grabbed his ankle. He slid and felt himself being dragged back into the lake.  
He squirmed as much as he could, but he was only slipping further in.  
Glenn and Tara saw him and ran to his aid. Tara fired a shot into the water and Glenn pulled him up. "Eugene said the road's clear." Glenn said.  
"Good...going." Abraham said in between breaths. He patted Glenn on the back and the three of them ran back to camp.

(**End Credits**)


	4. Chapter 4

Hysteric:

It had been three days since Michonne had found Rick and Carl. Rick was finally up and walking. He still limped slightly, and his right hand was still busted, but Carl and Michonne were just happy that he was recovering. Physically, anyway.  
They had never seen him so broken before. He hardly spoke. He answered yes and no questions, and they had both caught him muttering something like "I have to clear." on several occasions, but he would not engage in conversation with them.  
Michonne was outside on the street. They were setting up a sign for the others, letting anyone who came across it know where they are going. Carl walked up to her with a bucket of paint in hand.  
"Is there enough?" She asked  
"Yeah, there's plenty." He replied.  
"Good. We'll have to do this more than once."  
Michonne had already dragged a chair outside and sat a dead walker in it. In its lap lay Daryl's old crossbow.  
Carl finished writing the message in red paint in minutes. It read: "**KING COUNTY -C, M, R**"  
"We can still wait a day or two, you know." Michonne said.  
"No. You told me that Judith might still be out there. We have to search everywhere."  
Michonne smiled proudly. "And that's exactly what we'll do."  
They walked away from the sign, in a genuinely good mood, considering the circumstances.  
But lurking in the forest were the hunters, stalking their prey.  
"What makes you think these guys will be any easier? Human Barbie stuck an arrow through David's eye and those other two mutilated a bunch of thugs in the middle of the night." One woman asked.  
"One of them's injured, and another is a kid. It's just the samarai wannabe we have to worry about."  
(**Cue Opening Credits**)

"I'm not, you know." Sasha said, breaking the silence. She was at the wheel, and they had been on the road all morning. Maggie was asleep in the back seat.  
"Not what?" Bob asked.  
"You said you didn't know if I was religious. I'm not. And you know, I was actually starting to wonder, is there a god? I got sick, people were dying everywhere, but then Hershel- Holy Hershel-saved me. It really did make me wonder. But that idea was killed in its crib the very next day. Hershel died, the prison fell, you got shot, and Maggie was bitten."  
"It's not all bad." Bob said.  
"_How_ is it not all bad?" Sasha questioned him with a small chuckle.  
"We still got each other. I watched the same thing happen to two different groups before yours. We got away, though. We know everyone on that bus got away. I'm not alone. That's good enough for me." He told her.  
Sasha felt sympathy for Bob. She didn't trust him much, and even had suspicions over whether or not he killed Karen and David. But not anymore. "Ours." She told him, "our group, not just mine."  
Bob could see something up ahead. "You wanna' check out that truck?" He asked.  
"Yeah, wake up Maggie." She replied.  
Maggie woke up reluctantly. She had been dreaming about Glenn, Beth, and her father. "Where are we?" She asked.  
"Saw this truck, figured we'd check it out." Bob said.  
Sasha parked on the side of the road and they got out. Maggie's entire left hand was bandaged, and she had to use her pistol with one hand. Sasha was carrying a rifle, and Bob a handgun.  
Sasha led in front toward the truck. Maggie hated aiming with one hand, so she sheathed her gun. She pulled her machete out of her belt as a replacement.  
Sasha banged on the side of the truck. "Anybody in there?" She asked. There was no response, and she motioned for them to follow her to the back. "Holy shit." She said when she looked inside. They had not eaten since they left the prison, and rejoiced at the sight of food.  
The entire truck was filled with cans and bottles. They all smiled and high-five'd each other. "They got spaghetti! Hershel would have a fit!" Sasha exclaimed as they all started sifting through the supplies. Bob's smiled disappeared, though, for when he moved a box out of the way, a wine case lay in front of him.

Rick covered his eyes as he walked out of the house. Michonne had everything packed up and had made sure that it was all securely tied around her pets.  
"Wait. Almost forgot." Michonne said as she zipped open Carl's bag. She pulled out his old silencer and handed it to him. "We'll want to be quiet while we're on foot. Daryl taught me how to hotwire a car, so we shouldn't have to walk for long." She told them.  
Carl put the silencer in his pocket. "I'll put it on when I have to use it." He said. Michonne smiled. Carl had learned restraint.  
"Let's go." She said. The trio set off with the pets following closely behind. Rick began muttering incoherently as they walked down the street.  
"What is it?" Michonne stopped and questioned him.  
"I-I know her." He said.  
"You know who?"  
Rick held up his hand and pointed at one of her pets. "She just-she just wanted to be like-like Eddie."  
"Okay..." Michonne said. "What does that have to do with anything?"  
"Just stop." Carl said.  
"No." Michonne said. "He won't make it like this."  
Rick was still shaking slightly and holding onto his bandaged hand. Michonne slapped him. "Wake up!" She grabbed his head and pulled him close. "You hear me? You have a son. You have a group to find. You cannot let yourself go. You get to come back, remember?"  
Rick stopped shaking. "He didn't." He said.  
"He could have." Michonne assured him. "Anyone can. I did. You have before. Your son is alive. Your daughter may be. You are alive. Let me give you a little lesson. You've had it good, Rick. When this all started, I had a son. Just a baby. I had a boyfriend, a brother, friends. We all huddled together at my house. I went out just to get this sword. Neighbor was a real fanatic, you know? When I went back, by boyfriend was dead, my brother was dead, and my baby...those monsters threw him to the walkers to save their sorry asses! So I cut off their arms, and I cut off their jaws, and I made them my slaves. I was so angry, for so long. But then I realized, I was never gonna' make it that way. You can't stay in the past, you keep looking ahead until you find something worth living for. And you've got it standing right here in front of you. Now wake the hell up."  
Rick's eyes seemed to return to form. The haze was gone. "We should keep moving." He said.

"I'm gonna see if we can get this thing moving." Sasha said before walking outside and circling around to the front of the truck.  
Maggie slumped down to the floor. "I never asked you. How'd that run go?" She asked Bob.  
"We all made it back, and we got the meds. Went pretty well." He lied. Bob still felt guilty about what he did.  
"You think the college would be somewhere we could hole up? Maybe the others might've headed that way?"  
"No. There was this huge, _massive _herd on the road there. The college was overrun, too."  
Maggie sighed. "I don't know what to do next. We got plenty of food. As long we don't run out of gas, we're good. But we need to find the others."  
Bob's eyes widened. He had an epiphany. "What is it?" Maggie asked.  
"On the way to the college, we heard something. On the radio."  
Maggie was relieved, but also confused. "Why didn't you say anything earlier?"  
"I guess we forgot about it. Everything that happened and all."  
"What did it say?"  
"We couldn't make it out, and then we ran into the herd."  
They heard the engine come on, followed by failed attempts to move the vehicle. "Dammit." Sasha said. She walked back out. A walker was approaching the truck from the other side as Sasha walked back. "It won't budge. Guess we'll just have to-"  
BLAM  
Bob shot the walker as it rounded the corner and Sasha jumped. "Load everything up." She said.  
"We'll have to do it quick. Walkers probably heard that shot." Maggie said.  
"You're right. Grab everything, but if you see a walker, drop it and have your weapon ready. None of this is worth a life." Sasha said. Maggie and Sasha both picked up as much as they could. Bob grabbed a few cans and set them on top of the wine case. They all walked outside with their hands full and started walking back to the car.  
On the way up the hill though, they could see walkers descending on the area. Sasha set her things down and Maggie followed suite. Bob held onto the wine case, even though he kept telling himself to put it down.  
Sasha aimed her rifle at the walker standing at the top if the hill and fired. It dropped to the ground and the trio broke out into a run. They reached the top of the hill to see at least a dozen walkers headed toward them. Maggie dropped her machete and pulled out her pistol. Maggie and Sasha both began picking away at the walkers while Bob just stood there, holding the wine case. Sasha finally took notice. "Bob, put that down and help us!"  
"We gotta go." Maggie said. More walkers were coming.  
Maggie holstered her gun and picked her machete back up. They ran back to the car. Maggie sliced through a walker who stood between her and the door. Bob ran to the back and opened the trunk. He sat the wine case down, and a walker grabbed him from behind. He turned and pushed it away. Sasha shot it and looked at Bob scornfully.  
"I'm sorry." He said.  
"Just get in the car." Sasha ordered him. Sasha got in the driver's seat and Bob set himself in the back. Walkers were still grabbing at the windows as Sasha drove away.

It was nearly sundown and Rick, Carl, and Michonne had still not found a vehicle. "Did you bring a tent?" Rick asked.  
"I got one. We'll be pretty cramped but it's better than nothing." Michonne told him.  
"We have to go somewhere. We'll freeze if we don't." Carl said.  
They heard a rustling in the trees. They each pulled out their weapons and Carl attached his silencer.  
"We should keep moving." Michonne said.  
"Could be something we could eat." Rick said. They entered the forest, looking around. It was a walker. They each sighed and Michonne proceeded to stab her sword through its head.  
"What d'you think?" Michonne asked. "Keep moving or set up camp somewhere around here?"  
"We need to keep moving. It's not safe out here." Carl said.  
"Carl's right. Out in the open like this-"  
"Me and Andrea did this all the time. They'll keep us safe."  
"They...?" Michonne pointed toward the two walkers standing behind him.  
"What if they wander off?" Carl asked. Michonne pondered for a second. Carl had a point. She looked around and saw a low tree branch.  
"They won't." Michonne said as she grabbed hold of one of her pets. She guided it over to the tree branch, turned it around, and forced it through. She grabbed the other walker, and repeated. "You'll get used to the groaning. We'll set up the tent right next to them, and if we here anything else coming, I got my sword and you've got your silencer."  
"Ya'll set things up. I'm gonna look for some food." Rick said.  
"Don't worry about it. I'll scout ahead and find something. Can you two handle this?" Michonne asked.  
"It's just a tent." Carl said.  
"Alright. I'll be back in an hour or so." Michonne said before departing.

Sasha had driven off of the main roads and found a large lake. She parked the car and they all got out. "This looks good." She said.  
"Me and Bob can go set up the tent while you keep watch." Maggie said.  
"You keep watch. I wanna' talk to Bob." Sasha said. Maggie understood and nodded. Sasha handed her the rifle and Maggie climbed atop the car.  
Bob had already gotten the tent out and Sasha walked further toward the lake. "Let's set it up here." She said as she pointed at the ground beneath her.  
Bob walked over to her with the tent bag in hand.  
"What'd you wanna talk about?" He asked.  
"I think you know." She replied.  
"I'm sorry." He said sincerely.  
"Just set the bag down." She said. He set it down and she unzipped it. "Like I said before, I didn't trust you at first. You said you were the last from two different groups. But then you helped me get over my illness."  
Sasha looked into his eyes. "Is there something you want to tell me, Bob?"  
"Like what?" He asked as he began shaking.  
"What was in that box? Don't play stupid."  
"You know." He said as a tear rolled down his face and he looked down in shame.  
"You helped me get over my illness, and now I'm gonna help you get over yours." Sasha comforted him. "But Bob...for me to help you, you're gonna have to tell me the truth. What happened to the groups you were with?"  
"I...I...I killed them. It was all my fault. I didn't want to hurt nobody."  
"What did you do?"  
"Same thing I did earlier. Put everybody in danger. I killed Zack on that run. It was my fault."  
Sasha patted him on the back. "Hey." She pulled his face up. "Now you look at me. The first step to recovery is forgiving yourself. You haven't killed anyone. You have an illness, Bob. An addiction. You saved me."  
"I-"  
"_You saved me_. You brought those meds to me. You brought those meds to Glenn."  
Bob escaped her grasp and backed away. "I didn't even get any! I just grabbed another bottle." He exclaimed.  
"If you hadn't been there, they wouldn't have even known what to get. You're not alone, anymore, Bob. No one, and I mean no one, can make it alone. You have me and Maggie, now. Everybody else is out there somewhere. Glenn and all those people got away on the bus, and they'll need help from a doctor."  
Maggie was watching Sasha attempt to console Bob from a distance. She realized that it was a distraction and looked back. She could see something moving on the road. She raised her rifle and looked through the scope. Two figures were walking toward each other. The one to the left pulled out a shining object and used it to cut through the other.  
"Sasha! Bob! I think I see Michonne!" Maggie exclaimed.  
"What?" Sasha couldn't believe it. She and Bob ran back to the car. Maggie jumped down. "Here." She said as she handed Sasha the rifle.  
She looked through the scope, and could see the same figure walking across the road. "I saw her kill a walker." Maggie said.  
Sasha put the rifle down. "MICHONNE! 'THAT YOU?!" She called out. The other two followed suit.

Michonne could hear her name being shouted from a distance. She stopped walking and looked down to see three people jumping up and down, calling out her name. "Holy shit." She said as she broke out in a run toward them.

"She's coming down." Bob said. The trio ran up the winding road in hopes that they would meet Michonne in the middle.

Rick and Carl had finished setting up the tent, and the sun had gone down. "Should we go after her?" Carl asked.  
"If she's not back in about an hour, we'll go. I don't want us getting separated, though. Just wait a little while." Rick said.  
"What if she's in trouble?"  
"She can take care of herself. Our safety comes first."  
"You left Andrea behind, and she died."  
"There was no way of knowing-"  
"What happened to Carol?"  
Rick went blank. "Carl..."  
"_What happened to Carol_?"  
"She...Carl...Carol _killed_ Karen and David. We wouldn't have been safe with her."  
Carl teared up. "So you killed her?"  
"No, Carl-"  
"You killed Carol?! How are you any better?!"  
"I gave her supplies and a car. She's out there somewhere. She's prolly better off than we are."  
"How do you know she killed Karen and David?"  
"She told me."  
"She lied." Carl spat out coldly.  
"Carl, she confessed, she didn't even care."  
"What if Daryl had done it?"  
"Don't pull that-"  
"What if I did it?"  
Rick went blank yet again. "Carl...you didn't."  
Carl just looked at him.  
"Carl, you didn't!"  
"I'm going after Michonne." Carl said. Rick grabbed him before he made two steps.  
"Carl, tell me." He ordered. "Did you kill Karen and David?"  
Carl looked as though he was about to tell him something, but his eyes grew wide and he shouted. "Behind you!"  
Rick turned but was too late. The woman hit him on the back of his head with her knife. Carl pulled out his gun but another man grabbed him from behind. "Get the kid. We'll come back for him later." The woman said.  
Rick moved quickly and tripped her. He pulled out his Colt Python and looked her in the eyes as he pulled the trigger.  
Rick got up but saw that he was surrounded by at least five others. "Drop it." The man holding Carl said.  
"Please. Take whatever you want. We don't have much." Rick pleaded.  
They all laughed. The man holding Carl taunted Rick. "All we want," He paused and moved his gun up and down Carl's head, "is this boy. We need to have your word that you won't come after us."  
Carl had a coldness that Rick had not seen in a very long time, and Rick reflected that malice tenfold. "You have no idea who you are talking to." Rick attempted to intimidate them. They laughed again. He examined the situation. They all carried assault rifles, but none had them pointed directly toward him. There were five foes, and he had five bullets remaining.  
"You see, we don't _care_ who you are. We do know that your group is the first to give us some trouble. You're a tough bunch, but, afterall, we have safety in numbers." He let go of Carl and mockingly extended his arms to either side. Carl took his chance and quickly picked his gun back up.  
BLAM  
The man fell to the ground and Rick fired at two others. They both fell dead to the ground. "Carl, get down!" Rick shouted as bullets flew everywhere. Carl felt a sharp pain in his leg and he toppled over. "Carl!"  
"Screw it! Kill 'em!" A woman shouted. Walkers began to appear. Rick had three bullets left. His son was shot and the two adversaries were fast approaching him. More gunfire was heard and Rick looked up to see that the woman had been killed. Another shot was fired and the last man screamed as the bullet ripped through his arm and he dropped his weapon.  
Rick got up and to see that it was Sasha and Maggie who had saved him. They were still scoping the area out, sniping walkers while Michonne and Bob ran to Rick and Carl.  
Rick could hear Carl moaning and he ran over to him. "Over here!" Rick called out. Michonne and Bob both knelt down to him.  
Bob immidiately began to examine the gunshot wound. "It didn't hit anything real bad, but it's in there. We need to get him back to the car. I'll need to clean it and then we gotta remove the bullet." He told them.  
"Rick, what happened?" Michonne asked.  
"I don't know, they just showed up out of nowhere, said they wanted Carl." Rick explained.  
The man could hear them speaking as he dragged himself toward his gun. He finally grabbed hold of it but a foot stepped on it before he could use it. "You think I'm that bad of a shot?" Maggie questioned him sarcastically as she pointed her pistol at his head.  
"I ain't tellin' you shit!" He exclaimed before spitting on her shoe.  
Sasha stepped in. She grabbed his hand. "Who are you?" Maggie interrogated.  
"None of yer' goddamn business."  
Sasha twisted his pointing finger and he screamed. "Why did you attack them? Why did you shoot a little boy?"  
He looked at her menacingly and chuckled. "You know, we got a guy not too long ago. Chopped 'im up real good. We saw him with your man over there. We ate every bit."  
Maggie kept a straight face but Sasha showed pure disgust. "You're cannibals." Sasha realized out loud.  
"We prefer hunters. People are easier to kill than animals. Dumber, slower."  
Maggie knelt down and got as close to his face as she dared. "You're right. You were too slow to get your gun. And now you're too dumb to know not to piss me off." She said coldy as she pressed the gun to his head and fired.  
Maggie and Sasha both got up from the ground and turned to see that the others had watched the whole thing unfold. "Carl needs medical attention. We can catch up later." Michonne said.

The group had handled things well. Maggie stood watch on top of the car. It was late in the night, and the light from inside of the tent still shone bright. Bob had been working on Carl's leg the whole night. She could her crying and even a little screaming at first, but it stopped after that. Walkers occasionally wondered into their small, make-shift camp. Maggie used her machete to dispatch of them quickly. She had yet to have any reason to fire a shot.  
After another hour, Rick finally emerged from the tent and walked over to Maggie.  
"They not back yet?" Rick asked. Sasha and Michonne had gone out looking for food.  
"No, but I'm sure they're fine." She replied. "How's he doing?"  
"Fine. He's resting now. Bob got the bullet out and Michonne still had some antibiotics so he was able to clean it. He didn't lose a lot of blood so he didn't need a transfusion. Still, it's a good thing we got a car now."  
"I'm so glad we found each other. What's happened to ya'll? Have you seen anybody else?"  
"Nah. Just you. How 'bout you?"  
"Bob got shot during the attack. The bullet went through so we took care of it pretty well. We went by the Big Spot and got a lot of ammo and some weapons. I got bit."  
Rick was shocked. "Bit?"  
Maggie held out her left hand and he saw that her wrist was wrapped up. "Bob cauterized it before the infection could spread."  
"You Greenes," Rick chuckled, "toughest bunch I ever saw."  
Maggie laughed, too. "Did you see anyone get away? During the attack, I mean?"  
"No. We saw...we found Judith's cradle."  
Maggie felt a huge wave of sorrow wash over her. She shook her head as if she didn't believe it. "I'm so sorry. And...oh my god." Maggie covered her face with her hands and began to cry. "Beth went back to get Judith. I thought she-I thought she might've..." Maggie trailed off. They both just stood there, silently for a few minutes. But Rick had a reason for approaching Maggie, and he had to voice it.  
"What stopped you?" Rick asked.  
Maggie stopped crying. "Stopped what?"  
"Why didn't you kill him? The Governor. You had every reason to."  
"You're our leader. And even if you want to think you're not, I wasn't on the council, either."  
Rick looked straight at her. "You shot that man today. You knew he might have information, and you knew how to handle him. You helped me keep thangs running when everyone was sick, or gone."  
"You don't have to thank me, Rick-"  
"No, no, I do. Carol killed Karen and David. I sent her away for my own reasons. Your father is dead. I don't know if we'll ever see Daryl again and..." Rick decided not to bring Glenn up. "Sasha's the only council member left. She can't do this by herself. Maggie, when we get things running again, when we have a group, a place to stay," he looked straight at her, "would you lead us?"  
Maggie simply looked back at him, not knowing how to answer.

Sasha and Michonne had found a Walmart and decided to grab as much as they could. The place had clearly been raided before but there were so many walkers inside that most decided to leave much of the supplies behind. They walked out with their bags filled with cans. They had both decided not to speak to each other while they were inside and finally opened their mouths as they walked outside. "We'll come back tomorrow with the others, that way we can really search the place." Michonne said.  
"It'll also help to have the sunlight." Sasha said. Michonne didn't seem to be listening. She walked further out into the parking lot and pulled out her katana. "What is it?" Sasha asked.  
As they walked farther out, Sasha began to see a large truck loaded with weapons. "Who would just leave this?" Sasha asked.  
But Michonne couldn't respond. They heard the sound of a cocking rifle coming from behind them. "Put your hands up." The man said. They both did as the were ordered. "Now turn around."  
They both turned and Michonne's eyes grew wide as she recognized him. "Morgan?"  
He lowered the rifle to get a better look at her. "You one of them?" He interrogated.  
"One of who?"  
"_Them_. The ones who hunt."  
(**End Credits**)


	5. Chapter 5

Hiss:

Morgan would find himself many a night waking himself up, determined to clear. Sometimes he would come to his senses, only to become depressed by the state of his own mind. But one night, he was awoken by noise.  
He could hear screaming coming from outside. He grabbed one of his many assault rifles and looked out the window. Two silhouettes were chasing a young girl. She was limping and a trail of blood was behind her. They finally grabbed her and put a bag over her head. She continued to scream, although not loud enough for Morgan to hear. They dragged her off, into the darkness.  
Morgan suited up and went outside. He walked briskly across his trap-laden street, following the trail of red. It went on for quite some time, finally leading to an old bar. He walked quietly up the steps to the front door and peeked in.  
What he saw horrified him. One man held the girl down as the other tied a cloth tightly around her lower leg. The man pulled an axe out from his bag. Morgan could watch no more and flung the doors open. The two men turned and looked at him while the girl shouted "_HELP_!"  
Morgan had his rifle up as he threatened them. "Put your weapons down now! Leave all your stuff! I sure as hell don't wanna pop off any rounds this late at night but don't you think I won't! Get the hell out!"  
The two men scrambled for their things. "No, I said leave your stuff!"  
One man continued to gather his things while the other pulled out his pistol. "I warned you." Morgan said coldly before killing both his rifle. He walked toward the girl.  
"Please, you have to stitch me up." She pleaded. "I'll die if you don't." Morgan picked up a piece of paper lying on the floor. It was a map. "Please! Why are you ignoring me?" The girl cried.  
The map had very specific directions. He scanned over the entire page and saw at the bottom, near Savannah, Georgia, the end of the line. It was labeled "Sanctuary."  
"Please!" Morgan finally took notice of the girl. He said nothing as he examined her leg.  
Morgan lifted it up to get a better look. "Can you stitch it?" She asked.  
Morgan could not. It was clearly a bite. "Can you?"  
Morgan bent down and picked up the axe. "What are you doing? No, please, just let me go!"  
Morgan did not look at her. "You don't clear." He said simply before swinging down at her head, putting an end to her screaming. He sat the weapon down on the table and pulled up a chair. He sat down and looked at the poor girl. She was good, and she died. He had killed the two bad men. Morgan smiled slightly, and then burst into laughter. He looked up at the ceiling and exclaimed, "_We _have inherited the earth!"  
He laughed for a few more seconds, but stopped, and broke down crying.  
(**Cue Opening Credits**)

Rick and Maggie were getting their things ready. The sun was coming up and Michonne and Sasha had still not returned. Maggie was waiting by the car, checking one last time through the scope of her rifle for walkers. She heard Rick shut the trunk. She turned to him. "'You ready?" She asked.  
"Just about. I'm gonna go talk to Carl first." He replied.  
"Alright. I'll be waiting out here."  
Rick made his way to the tent and unzipped it. Bob was asleep, but Carl was just laying there, awake. "You feeling alright?" Rick asked.  
"Yeah. Bob said I should be able to walk in just a couple of days."  
Rick nodded. "You know why I wanted to talk?"  
"No."  
"Carl...you're gonna have to tell me. I need to know. Did you kill Karen and David?"  
"No. You're always trying to teach me lessons. I'm teaching you one. If you really thought she did it, you never would have asked me that. You shouldn't have sent her away."  
"Carl, they were two of our own-"  
"Shane was one of our own. I killed a surrendering teen. Neither of us were banished."  
"Carl, it's different."  
"No, it's not. You said it yourself. Carol's probably better off than we are. If we ever see her again, do you really think she's going to help us?"  
Rick didn't know how to respond. Carl was right. "We won't see her again. She's long gone now..."

**_4 DAYS BEFORE_**

Judith was whaling with tears from inside of the boxcar. Tyreese and Carol were both in a haze as they both looked down on their victims. "Carol. Carol!" Lizzie shouted. Carol shook her head and looked at her.  
"What?" She asked.  
"They have to be put down." Lizzie responded.  
Carol looked down to see that her knife was still lodged in the man's groin. She gripped hold of it and pulled. Blood spurted everywhere. Carol stood up and looked at the other children. "Luke, come over here."  
Luke and Molly were both still crying. "Luke, honey, you're going to have to toughen up. Get over here." Carol ordered him. Luke slowly walked over to her. "You know what you have to do, right?"  
Luke nodded. Lizzie pulled out her knife and handed it to him. "It's okay." She said, comforting him.  
"Molly, you get the other one." Carol said. Molly's eyes were huge. She was clearly terrified. Mika walked over to help her.  
Luke knelt down next to the man's body. "I can't do it." He cried. Lizzie knelt down next to him.  
"It's okay." She said as she took her knife back and plunged it into the man's skull.  
Tyreese was horrified by what he had done. He cried as he looked down at the mangled corpse beneath him. He was shaking, but he couldn't let go. His right hand was wrapped around the knife, still stuck in the man's intestine, his other gripping hold of his blood-stained shirt. Tyreese kept telling himself to wake up, but his body was still in shock. The eyes of the corpse opened back up and it moaned.  
Tyreese finally let go of the walker and grabbed for his hammer. He pulled it out of his pocket quickly. The walker lunged at him as he swung, killing it. He turned back to the rest and looked down to them. They were all speechless, except for Lizzie. "We should get some sleep." She said.  
Carol nodded. "We've only got a few hours left. Let's make the most of them." She said. Tyreese still just sat there. "You, too. We should have just stayed inside anyway."  
Tyreese looked around, still in a bit of a daze. He picked up the rifle next to him and climbed down. The kids had all gotten inside already, but Carol just stood there, waiting for Tyreese.  
He reached the bottom and Carol patted him on the back. "Just get some rest. We're all okay." She tried comforting him, before hearing the all-too familiar sound of groaning coming from behind her.  
Two walkers were approaching. They must have heard Judith's cries. "Hand me that." Carol said to Tyreese. She was too tired to use her knife. He took the strap off of his back and handed her the rifle. Carol raised it and aimed for only second before firing. The walker dropped dead to the ground and the other followed closely behind.  
Tyreese climbed into the boxcar as Carol looked around to make sure nothing else was out there. She could almost swear she could see something else lurking in the forest. She could sense it. Carol climbed in and shut the sliding door behind her. She looked at the children, and at Tyreese. "We're being watched." She said.  
Tyreese woke up several hours later. The sunlight was seething through the door. It was well past morning. He wasn't sure if he should wake them up, but they all needed food, especially Judith. He tapped Carol on the shoulder lightly. Carol's eyes opened and she looked at him. "What time is it?" She asked in a very tired voice.  
"I don't know. Don't have a watch." He replied.  
_Damn_. Carol thought. She should never have given hers to Rick. "Okay, kids, wake up." She said loudly, while touching each one's shoulder.  
They all woke up with a groan. "We need to find Judith some baby food." Tyreese said, worried.  
"We had a lot at the prison. Tyreese...I don't know where else to look. Glenn, Maggie, Sasha; they all went out and cleared every single place around here for supplies. Me and Rick went to that neighborhood and found hardly anything."  
"You saying we gotta look for it back there? It's not safe, there are walkers everywhere and the place was on fire and-"  
"Do you see another choice?"  
Tyreese didn't know what to say. He was still traumatized by what had happened the night before.  
Carol had to think over what to do. She couldn't just leave Judith alone, but she couldn't take her back to the prison ruins, either. "Would she be safe with you?" Carol asked Tyreese.  
"What? Of course she would-"  
"Tyreese, I need to know that you'll do whatever it takes to keep her safe."  
"I will. I _have_." Tyreese wasn't proud of what he did, but he would be willing to do it again if it meant keeping the baby safe.  
Carol then looked to Lizzie, who was already loading her gun. "You're staying here, Lizzie."  
"What?! I can help-"  
"I need you to help Tyreese watch over Judith. I know you can protect her. Luke and Molly need to practice, and I already have Mika backing me up." Carol told her.  
"Well why can't Mika stay, then?" Lizzie was annoyed.  
Carol knelt down in front of her, and looked into her eyes. "Lizzie, you've been through a lot. What you went through last night...that would be enough to devastate a grown woman. You need to rest." She said. Carol stood up, opened the sliding door, and jumped outside.  
It only took a few minutes for Carol to get everything ready for their trip. Each of the kids had a knife, but only Mika had a pistol. "Is it okay if we take the car?" Carol asked Tyreese. It was only a formality, though. She was taking it whether he liked it or not.  
"I don't see why we'd need it." He responded.  
"Alright. Take care." She said before opening the door and sitting in the driver's seat. Mika sat next to her while Luke and Molly got in the back. Carol smiled at them. Luke seemed to be recovering. "Just think of this as our first field trip." Carol said.  
Tyreese stood in front of the boxcar. Judith was crawling around behind him and grabbed his hand. He looked down at her and smiled for the first time that day. She tugged at his sleeve, as though it was something to marvel at. Tyreese laughed. "Isn't that cute?" He asked Lizzie. But he received no reply. He looked up to see a walker approaching. Lizzie had already walked over to it and raised her gun.  
BLAM  
Tyreese's smile faded, and Judith began to cry. "Let's just get inside, Lizzie." He said as he looked around. The sky had a strange look to it. "I think it's about to storm."

Alisha's body lay on the ground, half-eaten. Carol looked down on it. "Lizzie got this one?" She asked.  
"Yeah." Mika said. The fires in the prison had stopped burning. The entire structure was a shadow of what it used to be.  
"Funny how we never leave these places the same way we found them." Carol said. "Do you remember where Judith's cradle was?"  
"It was over there." Molly said, pointing toward the spot. They walked past the stagnant tank over to where the the cradle once sat.  
"Are you sure?" Carol asked.  
"We left it right there..." Mika said, confused.  
"I suppose it's a bit superfluous anyway. We just need to get the food. But first, let's load up all of these assault rifles into the car." Carol said as she lead them over to the now destroyed fence. "They're pretty heavy," she said while picking one up, "so just get one at a time. And be careful. None of you are big enough to use these yet. Not unless it was an absolute emergency."  
Each of them picked one up and slung them around their backs. Carol had two, the one she already had and a new one. Her weapons crossed each other on her back.  
Mika smiled and laughed. "Heh, what is it?" Carol asked.  
"You look," Mika chuckled, "badass."  
Carol laughed. "You shouldn't say that word." She said before looking out to the field at the various graves that had been dug so recently.  
Walkers wandered the field, but they were scattered. There were weapons scattered everywhere. "Get these packed up." She said. "You're all about to have some target practice."

"I should be out there." Lizzie said as she paced back and forth. Tyreese was sitting down with Judith in his lap, playing peekaboo. She was giggling hysterically.  
"Just sit down. She was right, you need rest." He told her.  
Lizzie ignored him and continued to pace. Judith stopped laughing, and her smile slowly disappeared. She crawled off of Tyreese's lap and sat down next to him.  
Tyreese could feel a chill, and then heard a hiss coming from the door. The wind was blowing roughly against the door. "Lizzie...take Judith and go sit in the corner over there." He said.  
"Why do you want me to do that?" She asked.  
"I wanna check the weather outside." He replied.  
Lizzie obeyed and picked Judith up. "Come on, Judy." She said as she walked over to the corner and sat down with her. Tyreese cracked the door and slid it only enough to see outside. The wind was blowing so hard, he could barely tell what was going on outside. The trees were shaking violently and a lone walker was struggling to stay standing.  
Suddenly, Tyreese felt the door beginning to jerk, and the walker flew up from the ground. Tyreese roared as he slammed the door back and slumped to the floor.  
"What is it?" Lizzie asked in a worried manner.  
"It's bad out there." He said as he crawled over to her. Tyreese then grabbed Lizzie quickly as the boxcar began to shake uncontrollably. Judith sobbed and Lizzie held onto Tyreese, digging her nails into his arm. "Hand me her!" Tyreese had to shout over the gusts if wind.  
Lizzie let go for only a second to pick Judith up and hand her to Tyreese before gripping hold of him yet again. "Don't let go!"

Carol stopped the car after driving a few yards out into the field. "Alright, be quick about it." Carol said before jumping out and firing at the first walker. "You get the rest Mika." She said as she ran over and picked up another assault rifle. Luke and Molly were doing the same only a few yards away. A walker lunged for Luke but Mika shot it just in time. "Load 'em up!" Carol ordered as she ran to the back. Luke and Molly both jumped in the back seat from the right side while Carol motioned for Mika to follow her around to the other side. They both aimed and killed the two walkers nearest to the car. "Okay, get in." Carol said as she opened the door. Mika jumped in quickly and shut the door while Carol ran back around to her side and got back in.  
"Woo! You're up next, Luke." She said happily.  
She drove them all around the field, repeating the pattern enough times to where each child received three turns. There was only one more spot: the graveyard. They all jumped in the car quickly. Carol was ecstatic to see them doing so well. "Aren't we-" none of them could speak in full sentences,"wasting- bullets?" Mika asked.  
"Think of it as an investment." Carol heaved in air. "We're getting a lot more than we're spending."  
She drove them over to the final spot and they all jumped out, firing at the remaining group of walkers. They looked around for supplies and picked up a few more weapons. Carol remembered that each person who died would have a memento taped to their crosses. _They don't need them anymore_. Carol thought. Many of them had weapons attached. "Come and get these, kids." Carol said. They each ran to a grave. "Use your knives to get the tape off."  
"I thought we were supposed to leave these?" Molly asked.  
Carol hoped he wouldn't have to answer that question. She turned to her and gave her a look that said everything. Molly simply looked down and went back to scavenging.  
Carol grabbed Andrea's Ladysmith off of Zack's gave. "It's not like it was your's, anyway..." She muttered.  
Mika asked Carol if they would need Patrick's glasses. "We might. Go ahead and take them." She told her.  
Carol then looked to the last one in the row, KAREN'S GRAVE. Carol felt her heart racing at the very sight of it. She started crying. "You okay, aunt Carol?" Molly asked.  
Carol patted her on the back. "Yeah, I'm fine. I just...a lot has happened."  
"Can I take her bracelet?" She asked.  
The mermaid bracelet Karen used to wear was hanging from her grave. "Sure." Carol said. She couldn't let herself cry in front of the kids. They had been through far more than she had.  
And yet she still stood there, staring at Karen's grave. "Can we go now?" Mika asked. Carol looked around. All of the weapons had been retrieved.  
"We still have to get the baby food. Get in the car, we'll circle around to the front office."

Tyreese could hardly think. Lizzie was in utter shell-shock, Judith was screeching, and the wind was howling. But it only got worse. Tyreese slid across the boxcar as it began to tip over. The door flung open and the wind grew a hundred times stronger. Lizzie screamed and flew into the air. "Lizzie!" Tyreese shouted. He held onto Judith with all his might, but she began to slip. Judith screamed in terror as Tyreese held onto the back of her shirt. He felt a rip, and it was as though time just stopped in Tyreese's head. His face was of pure horror. The shirt ripped and Judith flew away. "**_NO_**!" Tyreese shrieked. Blood splattered across his face and he simply let go, waiting to be taken away from the god-forsaken world.  
But death would not come for him, as the wind stopped. The tornado had moved on, and Tyreese just lay there, mentally lifeless.

Carol parked in the front entrance of the prison. There was a small herd standing between them and the front doors. "Alright, guys. Here's your final exam." Carol said. She closed her eyes for a moment and took a deep breath. "Everybody got a knife and a full clip?" She asked.  
They each nodded, double-checking their respective weapons. "Follow every order. If I say run, run. If I say shoot, shoot. If I get taken down, you leave me and head straight back to Tyreese. You got it?" They nodded again. "Okay, let's do this."  
They all got out of the car. Carol had her two rifles strapped to her back and held the Ladysmith in her right hand. She walked to the trunk and opened it in order to obtain extra clips of ammo. She stuffed the cops into her pockets.  
Carol walked in front of the children, standing in front of the car. "Get ready." She said as she raised her weapon at the first walker. She walked briskly to it and fired just as her pistol touched its head. The entire horde turned and started shambling toward her.  
"Circle up!" Carol ordered. Mika and Molly ran to either side of Carol while Luke stood opposite of her, making the same phalanx formation that Rick had used to clear the prison many months ago. They all fired at the nearest onslaught of walkers, leaving plenty of room. "Just keep moving. If you run out of ammo, just tell me." Carol told them as they each continued popping off rounds. They were mere feet away from the door. Carol tucked her pistol into her pants and grabbed her assault rifle. She raised the much more impressive firearm at the double-doors and quickly took down the remaining walkers that stood in their way.  
Only a dozen walkers were still in the parking lot. Carol slung the assault rifle around her back. "Here." She said as she pulled out the extra clips and handed them to her students. Mika and Molly quickly reloaded while Luke dropped his pistol. They both quickly killed the walkers on their respective sectors of the parking lot. Luke picked up his gun to see that only one walker remained. He began to cry at the sight of it.  
"Luke, what is it?" Carol asked. The walker was only yards away.  
"_Mom_!" He cried hysterically.  
Carol's heart was broken. His mother died when the Governor murdered his soldiers, but we body had not been recovered. She patted him on the back and walked past him.  
Carol's mind went to a very dark place. "No!" Luke yelled. Mika and Molly both held him back. The situation reminded her of a very dark place in her history. She pulled the Ladysmith from her holster, aimed at Luke's undead mother, and fired.

It was a quiet ride back. What should have been a nice bonding moment for Carol between her and her students turned into something rather dark. After they had cleared out the parking lot, nothing else stood in their way. The occasional walker in the halls was no match for Carol's knife.  
They had retrieved all of the baby-related materials that were left along with some medical supplies and departed. They were nearing their destination and began looking around. Trees had fallen and torn bodies hung from the branches, dripping blood. They finally reached the boxcar only to see it tipped over. Carol cried and ran out of the car. The kids followed slowly, traumatized by the idea of losing even more people.  
Carol dropped down to her knees. She didn't even want to look inside. All of their things were already in the car anyway. After a few more moments of staring blankly at the sight of destruction, she stood up and turned to her students, all of them tearing up. "Let's go." She said simply, almost at a whisper.  
But it was loud enough for Tyreese to hear. He scrambled to stand up and called out to her as he attempted to climb out. "Wait, I'm alive!" He shouted.  
Carol stopped dead in her tracks, and turned to him. Tyreese had a look of sad relief that quickly turned to fear at the sight of Carol's face. He had never seen such rage. Carol rushed toward him like a bull and pointed her Ladysmith straight at his head. "**_YOU LET THEM DIE! THIS IS YOUR FAULT_**!" She accused.  
"I-I'm sorry!"  
Carol touched the tip of the pistol to his head. "_I killed Karen and David_." She hissed.  
Tyreese lost it then. He didn't wven care if she pulled the trigger. He just stayed there, quivering in anger and sorrow. Carol was ready to pull the trigger when she heard something: the cry of a baby.  
Tyreese turned slowly and knelt back down to see inside of the boxcar. Judith crawled from out of the darkness, slower than usual, but clearly alive. Carol climbed on top or the boxcar and jumped inside. Tyreese picked up Judith with half a smile on his face. "Not even a scratch..." He said while looking down at her.  
"Can I hold her?" Carol asked. What happiness Tyreese had left him then. He looked at Carol with a scowl and turned away from her. "Where's Lizzie?" She asked more coldly.  
She received no answer and decided to crawl back, further into the boxcar. She hit the side and felt something wet. She felt around it and recognized the shape of her face. Carol dragged Lizzie out quickly into the light to get a good look at her. Her skull was cracked, and she was unconscious.  
"She saved Judith..." Carol said, admiring her adopted daughter.

Carol tried using the few antibiotics on Lizzie that she had, but they were near-useless. After Lizzie had awoken, she seemed different. "She's clearly got a concussion." Carol said to Tyreese. They were sitting in the boxcar. The sun had only just gone down but all of the kids had already gone to sleep.  
Tyreese was still extremely angry. "Yeah..." He said. "She seems a bit...unhinged." Tyreese looked straight at her hatefully.  
Carol wasn't stupid. She knew what he was suggesting. "I saw Patrick. He looked FINE. Then he had killed twelve people and ruined an entire cellblock in one night. The kids were in there. Karen and David were the only ones we knew were sick, so I tried to stop it. I failed, and I'm sorry. Tyreese, I cannot tell you how sorry I am-"  
"You're not sorry. You're not sorry at all about killing her. You're just sorry because you didn't save anybody." Tyreese paused. Carol was starting to cry. "And you didn't get separated, Rick kicked you out." Tyreese got closer to her, and looked into her eyes with loathing. "And if it wasn't for these kids, I'd kill you. Right. Now."  
Carol's eyes dried quickly, and her coldness match his. "Likewise." She hissed. Carol had a hatred burning in her that she had not in such a long time. She wanted to kill Tyreese for threatening her. He couldn't shoot, and he was soft. If she died, the children would soon follow. He could not keep them safe.  
Carol finally ignored his death gaze and laid down to get some sleep. But Tyreese just sat there, weighing his options. He couldn't just leave them with her. He looked down at Judith, sleeping there next to him. He had made up his mind. Tyreese quietly woke Luke and Molly up. He shushed them both, and pointed at Judith. Luke picked up a pistol, but Molly quickly took it away from him, shaking her head and pointing at Judith. Luke understood and reluctantly picked the baby up from the floor. Tyreese lifted Molly up first, followed by handing Judith to her. He lifted Luke up and Molly handed Judith back over to him.  
Tyreese climbed atop the boxcar, took one last look at Carol, and readied himself for a jump. But he was stopped. "Tyreese?" He heard a voice ask. He turned to see Mika. His heart broke at the very sight of her. "Where are you going?" She asked.  
"I'm...I'm goin' on a run. It won't take long. Just go back to sleep.  
"What about Luke and Molly? Are they with you?"  
"Y-yeah. I wouldn't want Carol to worry. You need to be here to explain." He hated lying to her.  
"Okay. Be safe." Mika said innocently.  
"You, too." Tyreese said before turning back to the dark forest. Luke and Molly stood underneath him, next to the boxcar. He wept a tear and jumped down.

Carol woke up, immediately noticing the lack of company. Lizzie was still asleep, but Mika was already standing up, looking at her, and then she coughed. Carol didn't want to startle her, so she remained calm. "Mika, where are the others?" She asked, biting her own lip.  
"They went on a run. Tyreese said they'd be back soon."  
"He did, did he?" Carol got up and looked over to make sure the car was still there. She was horrified by the sight of it. Those kids would never survive out there with him, and especially not without a car. Then she froze, with a chilling realization. "Mika...where's Judith?" Carol asked, not even wanting to turn around.  
"I don't know. I guess Tyreese took her with him." Mika said before coughing again.  
Carol knew what she had to do, but she didn't know how. Mika coughed yet again. "Mika, are you feeling well?" Carol asked as she held the back of her hand to Mika's forehead. "You're burning up." Carol was exasperated. Mika was sick, and Lizzie was injured.  
Carol knelt down to Mika with tears in her eyes. "Mika...you stay put, you hear me? I have to go find the others. You stay here, you stay quiet. And if _anyone_ but me shows up, you don't hesitate. Promise me, Mika."  
"I promise." She said innocently.  
"I'll be right back, okay? Don't you worry about your aunt Carol."  
"I won't. I promise." Carol let go of her and stood up. She climbed out of the boxcar and walked to the car. She took one last look at the place, and stepped inside of her car. She drove off slowly. The sun was rising in the distance, and she had the whole day ahead of her. But she had no idea where to start.  
And when the car was finally out of sight. The hooded silhouettes descended from the forest and walked toward the boxcar. The Hunters had waited patiently, and their reward was just sitting there, waiting for them.

**_PRESENT DAY_**

Rick stepped out of the tent. Maggie had already donned her riot gear. "Sasha's wearing the other one. I can take this off and you can have it, though." She said.  
"Nah. You're better with it anyway. Alright, let's..." Rick trailed off. Maggie turned around to see a large truck coming down the hill. They both loaded and aimed their weapons, followed by hiding behind the car. Maggie turned to the tent. "Bob! Carl! Get down!" She shouted.  
Bob awoke abruptly and Carl pushed him back down, shushing him.  
The car parked. "Who's there?!"Rick interrogated. Michonne, Sasha, and another person clad in the same riot gear as Maggie and Sasha exited the vehicle. Rick and Maggie lowered their weapons and walked out into the open. "Who are you?" Rick asked.  
The man removed the helmet, revealing himself to be Morgan. "Oh my god." Rick said as he hugged him. Morgan felt odd. He had forgotten what it felt like to be embraced in such a way.  
"We found him parked outside the Walmart in town." Sasha said. "Rick," she got his attention. "He's seen them."  
"Who? The others?" Rick thought she was talking about the rest of the group.  
"No. The ones who attacked us. He calls them the hunters." Michonne said.  
"They hunt." Morgan said.  
Sasha approached Rick and held a map out to him. "What is this?" He asked.  
"A map. It leads to a place called Sanctuary. We were thinking about heading there. Morgan said he found it on one of them."  
"We heard a radio signal." Michonne said. "Me, Daryl, Tyreese, Bob. On the way to the college, we heard a transmission talking about this place."  
"What if it's there home? How do we know this isn't where they take people when they..." Maggie suggested.  
"It could be that." Sasha said. "And if it is, we can take them out at their nest. But if it's not...Rick, this could be our answer."  
Carl and Bob walked over. "Morgan?" Carl asked.  
"What's going on?" Bob asked.  
Rick looked up from the map, turned and looked at them, and then back at the others. "We're going south. We're gonna find this place, and then we'll work our way from there. On the way there, we might find the others. We'll stop by the prison, by all of our meeting places."  
"Dad, what if we don't find any of them?" Carl asked.  
"What if we run into Carol?" Maggie asked.  
Rick looked around at them. As much as he didn't want it, they were looking to him for answers. He was their leader whether they liked it or not. He looked at Maggie. "Your father said we can all come back. We all can. If we find Carol, she's gonna join us." Carl smiled as Rick continued. "We keep asking the three questions. We keep accepting people. Load everything up. We're heading out now." Rick ordered.  
(**End Credits**)


End file.
